This disclosure generally relates to a pressure control valve. In particular, this disclosure is directed to an electrically operated valve, including an in-line flow-through construction, to control the level of vapor pressure in a fuel tank of a vehicle.
It is believed that prior to legislation requiring vehicles to store hydrocarbon vapors that are generated when refueling a vehicle, a simple orifice structure was used to maintain a positive pressure in a fuel tank to retard vapor generation. It is believed that such orifice structures could no longer be used with the advent of requirements controlling on-board refueling. It is believed that, on some vehicles, the orifice structure was simply deleted, and on other vehicles, the orifice structure was replaced with a diaphragm-actuated pressure relief valve. It is believed that these diaphragm-actuated valves suffer from a number of disadvantages including that the calibration (i.e., pressure blow-off level) changes with temperature and age.
It is believed that it is necessary on some vehicles to maintain an elevated pressure in the fuel tank to suppress the rate of fuel vapor generation and to minimize hydrocarbon emissions to the atmosphere. It is believed that under hot ambient temperature conditions or when the fuel is agitated, e.g., when a vehicle is operated on a bumpy road, the amount of fuel vapor generated can exceed the amount of fuel vapor that can be purged by the engine. It is believed that a carbon canister can become hydrocarbon saturated if these conditions occur and are maintained for an extended period. It is believed that such a hydrocarbon saturated carbon canister is unable to absorb the additional fuel vapors that occur during vehicle refueling, and that hydrocarbon vapors are released into the atmosphere. A legislated standard has been set for the permissible level of free hydrocarbons that may be released. A so-called xe2x80x9cshed testxe2x80x9d is used to measure the emission of the free hydrocarbons for determining compliance with the legislated standard.
It is believed that there is needed to provide a valve that overcomes the drawbacks of orifice structures and diaphragm-actuated pressure relief valves.
The present invention provides a valve structure that comprises a housing, a valve, and an actuator. The housing includes a first portion, a second portion, and an intermediate portion. The first portion extends along a first axis from a first port, the second portion extends along a second axis from a second port, and the intermediate portion connects the first and second portions. The first and second portions partially define a fluid communication path between the first and second configurations. The valve is movable with respect to the housing between first and second configurations. The first configuration permits substantially unrestricted fluid flow between the first and second ports. The second configuration substantially prevents fluid flow between the first and second ports. The actuator displaces the valve from the first configuration to the second configuration. The actuator partially defines the fluid communication path between the first and second ports.